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Dellys ( ar, دلّس, Berber: Delles) is a small Mediterranean town in northern
Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...
's coastal
Boumerdès Province Boumerdès ( ar, ولاية بومرداس, Kabyle: Tanebḍit n Bumerdas) is a province ('' wilaya'') of northern Algeria, located in the Kabylia region, between Algiers and Tizi-Ouzou, with its capital at the coastal city of Boumerdès (form ...
, almost due north of
Tizi-Ouzou Tizi Ouzou or Thizi Wezzu (, Kabyle: Tizi Wezzu) is a city in north central Algeria. It is among the largest cities in Algeria. It is the second most populous city in the Kabylie region after Bejaia. History Etymology The name ''Tizi Ouzou' ...
and just east of the
Sebaou River The Sebaou River, or Oued Sebaou (''Asif n Sabaw'' in Kabyle, ''Wād Sībāw'' or ''Wād Nissa'' in Arabic) is the main river of the western Kabylie region of Algeria (roughly corresponding to the present-day Tizi Ouzou Province), which flows into ...
. It is the district seat of the
daïra A daïra or daerah ( ''circle''; plural ''dawaïr'') is an administrative division in Algeria and Western Sahara in West Africa, as well as Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia in Southeast Asia. It is commonly translated in English as "district". West ...
of Dellys. The town is 45 km from Tizi Ouzou, 50 km from Boumerdes (the provincial capital), and about 100 km from the capital Algiers. It is notable for its Ottoman-era
Casbah A kasbah (, also ; ar, قَـصَـبَـة, qaṣaba, lit=fortress, , Maghrebi Arabic: ), also spelled qasba, qasaba, or casbah, is a fortress, most commonly the citadel or fortified quarter of a city. It is also equivalent to the term ''alca ...
, two colonial-era lighthouses (marking Cape Bengut), and some beaches; the principal activities of the area are fishing and farming. As of 2008, the population of the municipality is 32,954.


Geography

The Dellys area presents a natural harbour in the form of a small bay sheltered on the west and northwest by the peninsula of Sidi Abdelkader (largely occupied by the town cemetery, along with a small lighthouse). This peninsula is the seaward extension of the mountain of Assouaf, looming over the town. Around this harbour grew the
Casbah of Dellys The Casbah of Dellys () is a historic kasbah or medina quarter, the old town in the city of Dellys, Algeria. The kasbah is known for Ottoman Algeria-era buildings and cityscape. Today it is a favorite spot for tourism in Boumerdès Province. Hist ...
. During the colonial period the town grew southwards, as the port was expanded; a technical school, the ''École des arts et métiers'', was also built to the north, near the cemetery. Expansion further up the mountain was prevented by the preservation of the Bou-Arbi forest; instead, the town's growth after independence in 1962 was mainly concentrated in two "wings" on each side of it. To the south, former agricultural areas on the mountain slopes were built up with apartment buildings to form the new suburb Nouvelle-Ville, still surrounded by farmland on both sides. To the west, the relatively level Ladjenna (or "Les Jardins") area, with rocky coasts, consisted mainly of family gardens and small farms until the mid-twentieth century, but is now largely built up. It includes the tiny fishing port of El-Kouss; Cape Bengut, the northernmost land in the region, marked by a larger lighthouse; and the rock promontory of Sid El-Medjni. Further west, the village of Takdempt, at the mouth of the
Sebaou river The Sebaou River, or Oued Sebaou (''Asif n Sabaw'' in Kabyle, ''Wād Sībāw'' or ''Wād Nissa'' in Arabic) is the main river of the western Kabylie region of Algeria (roughly corresponding to the present-day Tizi Ouzou Province), which flows into ...
, remains marginally separated from Dellys proper. The municipality has a total of 678 hectares of forest, most of it accounted for by Bou-Arbi above the old town (74 hectares, Aleppo pine), Assouaf above the Ladjennna suburb (50 hectares,
thuya Thuya (sometimes transliterated as Touiyou, Thuiu, Tuya, Tjuyu or Thuyu) was an Egyptian noblewoman and the mother of queen Tiye, and the wife of Yuya. She is the grandmother of Akhenaten, and great grandmother of Tutankhamun. Biography Th ...
and degraded maquis), Achtoub (290 hectares, brush), and an area around Takdempt (250 hectares, brush).


Spots, districts and hamlets

In addition to its seat, Dellys proper, the
Dellys District Dellys is a district in Boumerdès Province, Algeria. It was named after its capital, Dellys. Municipalities The district is further divided into 3 municipalities: *Dellys * Ben Choud *Aafir History French conquest * Shipwreck of Dellys (15 M ...
is composed of the following localities: Ain Salem, Takdempt, Sidi El Medjni, Ladjenna, Bordj Fnar, Beni Azeroual, L'Assouaf, Lemchachka, Thouabet, Boukmach, Bouafia, Brarat, Dar El Melh (Les Salines), Boumedas, Ouled Mahdjoub, Beni Amara, Tizeghouine, Dar Rabah, Ouled Sabeur, Chegga, Mezoudj, Houasna, Azrou, Afir, Amadhi, Thissira, Ifri Tamarth, Ivehlal (Bhalil), Thala Ayache, Thala Arousse, El Marssa Tofaha. These are divided among three municipalities: Dellys itself,
Aafir Aafir or Afir (Arabic: أعفير, Kabyle: ''Aɛfir'') is a town and commune located on the Mediterranean Sea within Dellys District, Boumerdès Province, northern Algeria. According to the 1998 census it has a population of approximately 12,613. ...
to the east, and
Ben Choud Ben Choud is a town and commune in Boumerdès Province, Algeria. According to the 1998 census it has a population of 8,853. History * First Battle of the Issers The First Battle of the Issers in May 1837, during the French conquest of Algeria, ...
to the south.


Demographics


Postcode

From independence in 1962 to 1984, Dellys was part of the Wilaya of Tizi Ouzou, and each wilaya had a single postcode, in this case 15000. After the administrative division of Algeria in 1984, Dellys was attached to the newly created wilaya of Boumerdès, whose postcodes started with 35; the Daïra of Dellys was indicated by a following 1 (351xx), its chief town (Dellys) with the number 0 (3510x), and its town centre with a further 0, giving the town centre of Dellys the complete postal code 35100. In 2008, Dellys was given the new postcode 350043 as part of the restructuring undertaken by Algérie Poste.


History


Prehistoric

The Dellys area has been inhabited since prehistoric times; archeological finds in the area include
Iberomaurusian The Iberomaurusian is a backed bladelet lithic industry found near the coasts of Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia. It is also known from a single major site in Libya, the Haua Fteah, where the industry is locally known as the Eastern Oranian.The ...
remains, a
Neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several p ...
polished axe, and (at Takdempt) some dolmens and covered alleys.


Antiquity

Dellys first entered written history as the Phoenician
colony In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the '' metropolitan state' ...
of Rusucurru or Rusuccuru, known to the
Greeks The Greeks or Hellenes (; el, Έλληνες, ''Éllines'' ) are an ethnic group and nation indigenous to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea regions, namely Greece, Cyprus, Albania, Italy, Turkey, Egypt, and, to a lesser extent, oth ...
as ''Rhousoukkórrou'' ( grc-gre, ῾Ρουσουκκόρρου).. (A few authorities instead identify the ancient Rusucurru with
Tigzirt Tigzirt, the classical Iomnium, is a small town on the coast of northeast Algeria in Tizi Ouzou Province. It has a sleepy demeanor and attracts many tourists especially in summer from all over the country. Name Tigzirt's name derives from the ...
.) Rusuccuru became part of the Roman Empire about 42 CE with Claudius' annexation of the Kingdom of Mauretania, and was subsequently promoted to the rank of ''
municipium In ancient Rome, the Latin term (pl. ) referred to a town or city. Etymologically, the was a social contract among ("duty holders"), or citizens of the town. The duties () were a communal obligation assumed by the in exchange for the priv ...
'' after the suppression of
Aedemon Aedemon () was a freedman of Berber origins from Mauretania who lived in the 1st century AD. Aedemon was a loyal former household slave to the client King Ptolemy of Mauretania, who was the son of King Juba II and the Ptolemaic Princess Cleopat ...
's revolt. The town's regional importance in the
Roman province The Roman provinces (Latin: ''provincia'', pl. ''provinciae'') were the administrative regions of Ancient Rome outside Roman Italy that were controlled by the Romans under the Roman Republic and later the Roman Empire. Each province was rule ...
of Mauretania Caesariensis was sufficient that inscriptions in the nearest towns,
Iomnium Iomnium was a Phoenician, Carthaginian, and Roman port on Algeria's Mediterranean coast at the site of present-day Tigzirt. Name Iomnium is a latinization of the town's Punic name, which appears to have combined the elements ( xpu, 𐤀 ...
to the east (modern
Tigzirt Tigzirt, the classical Iomnium, is a small town on the coast of northeast Algeria in Tizi Ouzou Province. It has a sleepy demeanor and attracts many tourists especially in summer from all over the country. Name Tigzirt's name derives from the ...
) and Cissi to the west (modern Djinet), were dedicated to Rusucurru's '' genius loci''. With the advent of Christianity, Rusucurru became a suffragan bishopric, variously known as Rusucurium, Rusucurrum, and Rhusuncorae; it was the birthplace of the Christian martyr Marciana (d. 303). The town survived
Firmus According to the '' Historia Augusta'', Firmus (died 273) was a usurper during the reign of Aurelian. The contradictory accounts of his life and the man himself are considered to be a complete fabrication, perhaps based on the later Firmus. H ...
' revolt in 373–375, as witnessed by attestations of the names of its later bishops: * Fortunatus (mentioned in 411) * Optatus (a
Donatist Donatism was a Christian sect leading to a schism in the Church, in the region of the Church of Carthage, from the fourth to the sixth centuries. Donatists argued that Christian clergy must be faultless for their ministry to be effective and the ...
mentioned in 411) * Ninellus (mentioned in 419) * Metcum (mentioned in 484, exiled by
Huneric Huneric, Hunneric or Honeric (died December 23, 484) was King of the (North African) Vandal Kingdom (477–484) and the oldest son of Gaiseric. He abandoned the imperial politics of his father and concentrated mainly on internal affairs. He was m ...
) However, it disappears from written sources during later centuries.


Medieval

Under the name of Tedelles, the town reappears in the 12th century as the final refuge of the last Banu Sumadih emir of Almeria in Spain, Mu'izz ud-Dawla ibn Sumadih, who was granted land there by the
Hammadid dynasty The Hammadid dynasty () was a branch of the Sanhaja Berber dynasty that ruled an area roughly corresponding to north-eastern modern Algeria between 1008 and 1152. The state reached its peak under Nasir ibn Alnas during which it was briefly the m ...
after fleeing the advance of the Almoravids. After a period of prosperity, it was hard hit by the wars of the 14th century between the
Hafsid The Hafsids ( ar, الحفصيون ) were a Sunni Muslim dynasty of Berber descentC. Magbaily Fyle, ''Introduction to the History of African Civilization: Precolonial Africa'', (University Press of America, 1999), 84. who ruled Ifriqiya (western ...
, Merinid, and Zayyanid kingdoms, changing hands no less than 12 times between 1285 and 1373. The town (then in Zayyanid hands) was also sacked by a Valencian and Majorcan fleet in 1398, following a raid on Torreblanca. After 1438, Dellys came under the rule of the
Thaaliba The Thaaliba () were a sub-tribe of the Maqil Arabs, descended from Tha`lab ibn `Ali ibn Bakr ibn Saghir ibn Maqil. They settled the Mitidja plain in the medieval period, and came to rule Algiers and the towns around it from 1204 to 1516. The T ...
family of Algiers.


Early Modern

With the arrival of Oruç and
Hayreddin Barbarossa Hayreddin Barbarossa ( ar, خير الدين بربروس, Khayr al-Din Barbarus, original name: Khiḍr; tr, Barbaros Hayrettin Paşa), also known as Hızır Hayrettin Pasha, and simply Hızır Reis (c. 1466/1478 – 4 July 1546), was an O ...
in the 16th century, Dellys became part of the
Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
; they initially made the town their eastern headquarters. The
Casbah of Dellys The Casbah of Dellys () is a historic kasbah or medina quarter, the old town in the city of Dellys, Algeria. The kasbah is known for Ottoman Algeria-era buildings and cityscape. Today it is a favorite spot for tourism in Boumerdès Province. Hist ...
in its current form dates back in large part to this period, while also reflecting earlier periods with its urbanistic styles.


French colonization

In 1830, France decided to invade. On 15 May that year, as their fleet prepared to attack, one French brig was shipwrecked near Dellys (main article: Shipwreck of Dellys). Within a couple of months
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
had occupied Algiers, beginning the process of French colonization of Algeria. Dellys, however, would remain independent for a few years longer. The first French attack on the town came in 1837, in the wake of the First Battle of the Issers. In the same year, French expansion was temporarily put on hold by the
Treaty of Tafna The Treaty of Tafna was signed by both Abd-el-Kader and General Thomas Robert Bugeaud on 30 May 1837. This agreement was developed after French imperial forces sustained heavy losses and military reversals in Algeria. The terms of the treaty ent ...
, in which France recognized
Emir Abdelkader Abdelkader ibn Muhieddine (6 September 1808 – 26 May 1883; ar, عبد القادر ابن محي الدين '), known as the Emir Abdelkader or Abdelkader El Hassani El Djazairi, was an Algerian religious and military leader who led a struggl ...
's authority over most of western Algeria. Areas east of Algiers, including Dellys, soon swore allegiance to
Emir Abdelkader Abdelkader ibn Muhieddine (6 September 1808 – 26 May 1883; ar, عبد القادر ابن محي الدين '), known as the Emir Abdelkader or Abdelkader El Hassani El Djazairi, was an Algerian religious and military leader who led a struggl ...
, who appointed
Ahmed bin Salem Ahmed bin Tayeb bin Salem al-Debaisi or simply Ahmed bin Salem was an Algerian Sufi, commander, and warrior mostly known for commanding the Kabyle Zwawa resistance in the Emirate of Abdelkader. Origins Ahmed bin Salem was born between 1798, and ...
to lead the district. In 1839 Emir Abdelkader visited Dellys in person as part of a tour of his eastern frontiers, urging the inhabitants to prepare themselves for war rather than to place their trust in saints' tombs. The war did indeed resume that very year, following a French violation of the treaty further south at the Iron Gates. On 12 May 1844, French troops under the command of Bugeaud made a second assault on Dellys, finally occupying the town. A European quarter was then built immediately south of the Casbah. The town was bisected by the road which would eventually become the RN24. The troops turned the town's principal mosque into a military hospital on arrival, replacing it with a new one nearby which they completed in 1847. In 1871, Cheikh Mokrani led much of eastern Algeria in an attempt to end French rule. The tribes surrounding the town of Dellys, the Beni-Thour and Beni-Slyem, joined in this revolt. On 22 April they laid siege to Dellys proper, where the French garrison managed to retain control with help from passing warships. On 18 May, a column led by Lallemand arrived from the west and broke the siege. In the wake of the revolt's failure, much of the agricultural land surrounding Dellys was confiscated and given to French settlers, notably at Sidi Daoud and
Baghlia Baghlia (Arabic بغلية) is a town and commune in the Baghlia District of Boumerdès Province, Algeria. According to the 1998 census it has a population of 15,854. During the colonial period, it was given the name of Rébeval, after Napoleonic ...
. Mokrani's defeat, and the hardships that followed it, marked the end of organized military resistance to French rule in the region for almost three generations.


Algerian Revolution

Like the rest of Algeria, Dellys was engulfed in the Algerian War of Independence from 1954 to 1962. This commune saw the creation of several clandestine torture centers during the Algerian revolution: * Camp Gualota in the commune of Dellys.


Independence

Algeria became independent in 1962; during the following decades, the town grew substantially. The
2003 Boumerdès earthquake The 2003 Boumerdès earthquake occurred on May 21 at in northern Algeria. The shock had a moment magnitude of 6.8 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (''Extreme''). The epicentre of the earthquake was located near the town of Thénia in Boumer ...
caused significant damage, notably to the Casbah and Nouvelle-Ville. On 8 September 2007, a suicide car bomb attack on the naval barracks in the port, claimed by
AQIM Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb ( ar-at, تنظيم القاعدة في بلاد المغرب الإسلامي, Tanẓīm al-Qā'idah fī Bilād al-Maghrib al-Islāmī), or AQIM, is an Islamist militant organization (of al-Qaeda) that aims t ...
, took at least 30 lives.


Health

The Dellys hospital is the main health structure in the municipality of Dellys. This public hospital establishment (E.P.H.) of Dellys has a technical capacity of 150 beds as well as an organized capacity of 162 beds distributed as follows: * Internal medicine (male/female): 67 beds. * Maternity/gynecology: 32 beds. * Pediatrics: 32 beds. * General surgery: 31 beds.


Transport and roads

Dellys is connected to the rest of the country through two main roads: * RN 24, a coastal road leading to Algiers in the west (via Djinet) and Bejaia in the east (via
Aafir Aafir or Afir (Arabic: أعفير, Kabyle: ''Aɛfir'') is a town and commune located on the Mediterranean Sea within Dellys District, Boumerdès Province, northern Algeria. According to the 1998 census it has a population of approximately 12,613. ...
and
Tigzirt Tigzirt, the classical Iomnium, is a small town on the coast of northeast Algeria in Tizi Ouzou Province. It has a sleepy demeanor and attracts many tourists especially in summer from all over the country. Name Tigzirt's name derives from the ...
) * RN 25, providing a southward connection via
Baghlia Baghlia (Arabic بغلية) is a town and commune in the Baghlia District of Boumerdès Province, Algeria. According to the 1998 census it has a population of 15,854. During the colonial period, it was given the name of Rébeval, after Napoleonic ...
to
Tizi-Ouzou Tizi Ouzou or Thizi Wezzu (, Kabyle: Tizi Wezzu) is a city in north central Algeria. It is among the largest cities in Algeria. It is the second most populous city in the Kabylie region after Bejaia. History Etymology The name ''Tizi Ouzou' ...
. From 1894 to ca. 1935, a railway line connected Dellys to Mirabeau (modern Draâ Ben Khedda). At present there are three long-distance bus destinations: Dellys-Algiers; Dellys-Boumerdes; and Dellys-Tizi Ouzou.


Economy

Dellys has an agricultural land and mixed port (fisheries and trade). The port of Dellys, built in 1925, is now almost completely saturated with ships docking at its level. To remedy this situation, those in charge of the sector have decided to redevelop it. In fact, in addition to the reinforcement work carried out after the 2003 earthquake, a dredging operation to correct its water level has been launched. Its fleet is made up of 11 trawlers, 32 sardine boats and 150 small crafts.


Sports

As elsewhere in Algeria, football (soccer) is popular; Dellys-born footballers include
Abderrahman Ibrir Abderrahman Ibrir (10 November 1919 – 18 February 1988) was an Algerian football player and manager. Playing career Born in Dellys, Ibrir played club football in France for Bordeaux, Toulouse and Marseille. He also earned six caps for France ...
, former manager of the Algerian national team, and
Rachid Nadji Rachid Nadji ( ar, رشيد ناجي; born 15 April 1988) is an Algerian Association football, footballer who plays as a Striker (association football), striker for CA Batna. Career In 2014, Nadji joined USM Alger. In 2016, he returned to ES Sé ...
, a striker for
MC Oran ( ar, نادي مولودية وهران), known as , commonly referred to as MC Oran for short, is a football club based in Oran, Algeria. Founded on 1 January 1917 and formed again on 14 May 1946, the club was known as Mouloudia Chaâbia Ouah ...
. The local team is the ''Union sportive de Dellys'' (USD); before independence, it was called the ''Association sportive de Dellys'' (ASD), founded in 1921. The town is equipped with a stadium capable of holding up to 7,000 people.


Ecclesiastical titles

Although no bishop has resided in Dellys for well over a millennium, and no church currently exists in the town, the
Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
nevertheless added the bishopric of Rusuccuru (the town's Latin name) to its list of
titular see A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular metropolitan" (highest rank), "titular archbis ...
s in 1933. In
Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
the titular bishopric is known as ''Rusuccurrensis''. The Ancient diocese has had the following incumbents, all Latin (Roman Rite) and of the lowest (episcopal) rank:GigaCatholic, with titular incumbent biography links
/ref> * Dennis Walter Hickey (1968.01.05 – 1999.10.06) *
Kevin Joseph Farrell Kevin Joseph Farrell, KGCHS (born September 2, 1947) is an Irish-American prelate and Cardinal. A former member of the Legion of Christ, he served as the seventh bishop of the Diocese of Dallas, as well as the chancellor of the University ...
(2001.12.28 – 2007.03.06) * Marek Mendyk, Auxiliary Bishop of Legnica (2008.12.24 – ...)


Notable people

* Habib Ayyoub, writer * Abderrahmane Benhamida, former Minister of Education *
Abderrahmane Hammad Abderrahmane Hammad Zaheer ( ar, عبدالرحمن حمٌاد, born May 27, 1977, in Dellys) is a former Algerian track and field athlete who competed in the high jump. He represented his country at the Summer Olympics in 2000, taking the bro ...
, athlete * Mokhtar Hasbellaoui, doctor *
Abderrahman Ibrir Abderrahman Ibrir (10 November 1919 – 18 February 1988) was an Algerian football player and manager. Playing career Born in Dellys, Ibrir played club football in France for Bordeaux, Toulouse and Marseille. He also earned six caps for France ...
, footballer * Marciana of Mauretania, Christian martyr *
Rachid Nadji Rachid Nadji ( ar, رشيد ناجي; born 15 April 1988) is an Algerian Association football, footballer who plays as a Striker (association football), striker for CA Batna. Career In 2014, Nadji joined USM Alger. In 2016, he returned to ES Sé ...
, footballer *
Sidi Yahya Sidi Yahya may refer to: People *Arabic name of John the Baptist, who is a prophet in Islam. *Sidi Yaya Keita, Malian footballer Places Morocco *Sidi Yahya El Gharb, town in Kénitra Province *Sidi Yahya Ou Youssef, commune in Khénifra Provin ...
al-Tadallisi al-Thaalibi, imam * Jean Raoux, general * Mu'izz ud-Dawla ibn Sumadih, ruler *
Georges-Fernand Widal Georges-Fernand-Isidor Widal (March 9, 1862 in Dellys, Algeria – January 14, 1929 in Paris ) was a French physician. From 1886 to 1888 he devoted himself to public demonstrations of the researches of the faculty of pathological anatomy, and du ...
, physician * , Algerian footballer.


See also

*
List of lighthouses in Algeria This is a list of lighthouses in Algeria. The list includes those maritime lighthouses that are named landfall lights, or have a range of at least fifteen nautical miles. They are located along the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean coastline, and on ...


Notes


References

* * * * *


Dellys during the Algerian Revolution

* * * * {{Authority control , additional=Q23013082,Q106245825,Q106245915 Phoenician colonies in Algeria Populated places in Boumerdès Province Lighthouses in Algeria Boumerdès Province